“A construction site can’t be managed without information, so if there is no access to information where it is really needed, it presents a difficult situation for professionals. There have been attempts to circumvent this problem by looking for a workforce from abroad that is cheaper and less educated instead of enabling professionals to work efficiently,” development director Otto Alhava from Fira states.

The location of the pilot project was a Fira pipe renovation site, where Sweco modeled the bathroom and delivered to workers the BIMs necessary for them to do their work effectively. In addition, an application was ordered from VTT that allowed visualization of the BIM in the location through the use of augmented reality (AR).

“Using AR, the user doesn’t have to compare the 3D model and the physical room because they are brought together on the mobile screen. It facilitates combining the physical and virtual space,” VTT principal scientist Charles Woodward says.

Individual AR views

VTT has been developing different AR solutions for a long time. According to Woodward, a central challenge in AR is to make the digital elements appear exactly where they need to in the real world. Marker technology developed by VTT was used for this.

A new addition to the technology was to combine the marker technology by VTT with Google ARCore technology, which allowed for the BIM 3D elements—such as bathroom furniture and fittings—to stay in their designated locations even when the marker was not visible.

“Together with the AR solutions by VTT and ARCore, we created a system that keeps the BIM elements in the right place to within a few centimeters. This is quite sufficient for visual observations. For example, a pipe fitter can make sure he doesn’t install the pipes before the electricity is installed,” Woodward describes.

From the user perspective, the application is easy to use. All they need to do is to start the application and point it toward the marker on the wall, and then all the 3D elements will appear in their designated locations.